Section 3: Patriotic Infidelity

     With the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the U.S. entry into World War II, the issues of distrust and suspicion among the people in the islands was a focus of more Hollywood movies such as "Jungle Heat", released in 1957 with a plot of events prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor.  Much discrimination towards locals were obvious in movies such as this.  One character views the locals as "a few steps removed from their primitive ancestors" and that they must be kept in line.

     Discrimination between locals and whites alike as well as labor problems were on the rise prior to Pearl Harbor's bombing.  In "Jungle Heat", we witness the belief by one plantation manager that "curiosity leads to laziness" in regards to the laborers of the plantations and organization within their ranks.  There is a common suspicion that Japanese are being snuck in to Hawaii and causing labor issues and accidents on the plantation that is the scenario for this movie.  The movie also includes suspicions on a Filipino plantation worker who may be behind the accidents occurring as well as a potential uprise by the laborers.

     As seen in Section 2:  Bombing Paradise, there is infidelity, distrust, and suspicions between the white men as well and the one white woman featured in the movie.  The locals are resigned to supportive roles with few speaking lines.  There are no luaus, or spectacular hula sequences in "Jungle Heat".  The movie evokes a negative connotation of what life in Hawaii was like prior to Pearl Harbor, and therefore not a place one would want to be.

Section 2: Bombing Paradise

     Many movies have been produced and marketed about the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the United States entry into World War II.  Some examples, as we have seen in class include "Air Force" (1943),  "From Here To Eternity" (1953) and "Pearl Harbor" (2001).  How Hawaii and its people are depicted in these movies raises many questions that reflect the temperature of the human condition in that era.

     These movies all made use of locations that have become synonymous with what is perceived about Hawaii as a place:  Diamond Head and the white sand beaches.  Hawaii is represented as a place where life is "suspended" and will be left behind upon to return to routine life in the U.S.  Until that time of departure, life for the people here was strung together by common themes of distrust, infidelity, tragedy, betrayal, escape and loneliness in the time following the events of December 7, 1941.

     The other implication that Hollywood made in these movies was that many locals aided in the Japanese raid in Pearl Harbor and this belief was perpetuated stateside.  Not only were Japanese not to be trusted, but anyone from Hawaii might be suspicious.  While Diamond Head and Waikiki Beach may be location draws to visitors to the islands, the idea that local people could not be trusted laid the foundation for the negative perceptions of the people who lived here.

Observing Pearl Harbor from the air.

Distrust, violence, betrayal.

Escape, fear.

   

Wiki Wacky Woo: Section 1: "Bird of Paradise"

     According to Internet Movie Database (IMDb), the movie "Bird of Paradise" was released in1932 with the premise being that of a native island girl falling in love with a visitor (aka white male) to her island, where she is ultimately chosen to be sacrificed to an island god.  Talk about obstacles in romance.

     For the era it was filmed in, Hawaii was not yet the 50th State, so you can see why some of the portrayals might be depicted as they were: natives who live in grass huts, wear grass skirts, dance in front of big fires at a luau, and speak a different language.  It is the portrayal of the language that I found bothersome. While you could detect the use of some actual Hawaiian language words, such as "a'ole" and "wiki wiki", it was the rest of the gibberish that is presented as the Hawaiian language that implies it to be silly and nonsensical sounding.  This is insulting to the Hawaiian culture where preservation of the Hawaiian language is so important.  

     While viewers of this movie on the mainland would have no idea what was being said even if the language was accurate, it still presented the idea that the Hawaiian language is silly sounding.  The movie also presents English as a language that is easily adapted by the native girl from her island visitor as she quickly learns to communicate using his language rather than he adapting hers.  Though in the end, it is her ability to understand both languages that allows her to make the ultimate sacrifice for her love.